Tucson, Ariz.-based Truly Nolen Pest Control recently opened a franchise in Asheboro, N.C. As the second North Carolina location for Truly Nolen, it is being franchised by Joey and Shana Baker.

After Joey Baker graduated Indian River State College in Fort Pierce, Fla., with an associate arts degree, he went to work in sales at Velde Ford in Vero Beach. In 2001, he started a cutlery and outdoor gear business, JB Outman Distributing, which specializes in servicing mom-and-pop stores, knife show dealers, and internet retailers. He handles the sales, customer service and day-to-day operations, while Shana has handled the shipping since 2002. After 17 successful years, they have decided to take on another challenge.

“Although we still operate JB Outman, we wanted a second service business where we would be able to build it brick by brick, one customer at a time, because we are very big on customer service and the whole customer experience,” says Joey Baker. “After researching multiple franchise opportunities, we elected to purchase a Truly Nolen franchise because everyone we met that worked for the company had been there between 10 and 25 years, and the family atmosphere the company promotes aligned perfectly with our passions.”

The couple opened their Truly Nolen franchise on Jan. 1, and plans to hold a ribbon-cutting later in 2019.

Lance Washington, Truly Nolen’s director of domestic franchising, said the Bakers went through training recently at the company’s Leadership Center in Tucson, Ariz.

“Both Joey and Shana were fantastic to work with during training, and you can see their passion will carry over to their customer service,” he says. “Their nearly two decades of business experience and success in Asheboro should help them in their market in the years to come.”